Sweets for the sweet: employment at gift-related retailers

February 12, 2016

Valentine's Day comes this weekend. Many shoppers will seek sweets for the sweet—the traditional gifts of flowers, candy, wine, or jewelry and the accompanying Valentine's Day cards. They may find that there are fewer brick-and-mortar shops selling these gift items than in years past, but the number of businesses offering online shopping is larger than ever.

Over the 2001–14 period, the number of florists shops fell 41 percent and the number of gift, novelty, and souvenir stores fell 38 percent. The number of jewelry stores decreased 21 percent. The number of mail-order houses (which sell all types of merchandise using mail catalogs or television) declined 13 percent, as did the number of confectionery and nut stores. Beer, wine, and liquor stores increased in number by 18 percent over this period. The number of establishments involved in electronic shopping (which use the Internet to make retail sales of any type of merchandise) increased 373 percent from 2001 to 2014.

Between 2001 and 2014, employment at florists shops fell by 50 percent, and at gift, novelty, and souvenir stores by 37 percent. Employment at mail-order houses and jewelry stores decreased 23 percent, while confectionery and nut stores employment was down by 15 percent. Employment at beer, wine, and liquor stores was up 5 percent over this period. Employment at electronic shopping establishments increased 226 percent over the past 14 years.